Start a Pet Sitting Business

DETAILS

If you're an animal lover, find out how you can start your own pet sitting business to translate your passion into a profitable career!

In this course, you'll master the essentials of running a cat and dog sitting business. You'll begin with pet care, including nutrition, exercise, first aid, and identification of common diseases. You'll learn the basics of first aid and find out how to administer pills, liquid medications, and injections to an uncooperative cat or dog.

Next, you'll discover how to handle home visits and impress your potential clients. You'll also explore sticky situations that can arise, such as lost pets, pets that die unexpectedly, and pets that need immediate veterinary care.

In addition, you'll delve into finances and explore start-up costs, accounting, fee-setting, business plans, and low-cost marketing. You'll find out how to obtain required insurance, hire employees as your business expands, and entice financial institutions to loan you money.

To complete the picture, you'll identify many opportunities for expanding your pet sitting services. Is a dog-walking service right for you? Can you train puppies? Do you want to look after other animals, including horses?

By the end of this course, you'll have all the knowledge you need to become a professional pet sitter. In addition, you'll see how your pet sitting business can grow to continually challenge and satisfy you.

SYLLABUS

A new session of each course opens each month, allowing you to enroll whenever your busy schedule permits!

How does it work? Once a session starts, two lessons will be released each week, for the six-week duration of your course. You will have access to all previously released lessons until the course ends.

Keep in mind that the interactive discussion area for each lesson automatically closes 2 weeks after each lesson is released, so you’re encouraged to complete each lesson within two weeks of its release.

The Final Exam will be released on the same day as the last lesson. Once the Final Exam has been released, you will have 2 weeks plus 10 days to complete the Final and finish any remaining lessons in your course. No further extensions can be provided beyond these 10 days.

Week 1

Lesson 01 - Welcome to the World of Pet Sitting

Wednesday

Are you a bona fide animal fan? Do you love nothing more than a long walk with a furry friend? If so, then a career in pet sitting may be just right for you. In this first lesson, you’ll discover what pet sitters do, what the many benefits are, and how to determine if there’s a strong market for this business in your area. The good news is, you don’t need lots of money to get started—your love for animals, your strong sense of responsibility, and the knowledge and skills you’ll learn in this course will take you far!

Lesson 02 - Caring for Dogs

Friday

In this lesson, you’ll find out how to care for dogs. You’ll see that feeding is more than just putting food in a bowl as you discover how to determine food and water quantities for the dogs you care for. You’ll also learn about some of the ways to help Spot get the exercise he needs without overdoing. We’ll examine the dog’s vital signs—the signposts to health—and review specific conditions dogs sometimes develop, so you’ll always be able to assess the overall health of your canine clients. Finally, we’ll consider two emergency situations that can mean the difference between life and death for a dog and outline what to do if they arise.

Week 2

Lesson 03 - Caring for Cats

Wednesday

In this lesson, you’ll gain an understanding of all the ways that cats are not just little dogs. You’ll see that feline nutritional requirements are unique, and you’ll explore the latest guidelines for ensuring that cats get the nutrition they need. From hair balls and abscesses to more serious conditions, such as thromboembolism and urinary blockages, we’ll examine the particular health concerns you’ll need to be aware of as you care for cats. You’ll learn how to identify these diseases as well as others and evaluate a cat’s vital signs so that you can be alert to emergency situations.

Lesson 04 - Canine and Feline Behavior

Friday

Can you tell a timid dog that’s smiling from an aggressive one that’s baring his teeth? What would cause a cat to use your sofa for a litter box? In this lesson, you’ll gain insights into how dogs and cats think. You’ll gather quick tips on how to protect yourself when working with aggressive cats and dogs and also learn strategies for dealing with common feline and canine behavioral issues you’ll encounter as you care for them.

Week 3

Lesson 05 - Pet First Aid and Emergencies

Wednesday

In this lesson, you’ll learn how to recognize and deal with emergencies that can arise in your role as a pet sitter. You’ll delve into what to do with a bleeding pet or if one of your pets in care has an allergic reaction or experiences shock. You’ll find out what to do with conditions such as vomiting and diarrhea, foreign bodies, and eye problems, and what to do during the birthing process. Then we’ll cover poisoning and examine common toxins that pets may encounter. Finally, you’ll learn how to respond to emergencies with a review of how to do CPR in pets and what to include in a first aid kit.

Lesson 06 - The First Meeting, Finances, and Organizing Yourself

Friday

Have you ever gone into an interview totally unprepared for what happened? Did you make a poor impression? This will never happen to you in pet sitting! In this lesson, you’ll find out how to make the best impression to a new client—what to say and how to act. You’ll also consider how to assess the impression prospective clients are making on you—and how to refuse a client. Next, you’ll gain an appreciation of how much you can earn and how many calls you can do in a day. Lastly, we’ll look at how to get organized so you can get the most out of your new business.

Week 4

Lesson 07 - Servicing Clients and Home Visits

Wednesday

In this lesson, you get right into the thick of your new career by finding out what to do during the home visit. You’ll learn about what kind of information to get from your clients in advance and how to assess their needs based on the kind of services they request. Next, you’ll explore all the elements of a home visit, from managing keys and alarm systems to feeding, exercise, and everything you need to do to keep the pets healthy and happy day to day. Finally, we’ll get a first look at some of the little extra things you can do to offer the kind of service that keeps your clients coming back for more.

Lesson 08 - Sticky Situations and Medicating Pets

Friday

What happens when a pet you're caring for gets lost? What if the animal needs expensive veterinary care? Will you be stuck with the bill? In this lesson, you'll learn to cope with some of those sticky situations that pet sitters occasionally run into on the job. This includes losing a pet, the sudden death of a pet, as well as handling medical emergencies. You'll also learn how to handle some literally sticky situations—such as how to administer injections, eye and ear drops, and other kinds of medication.

Week 5

Lesson 09 - How to Market Your Pet Sitting Business

Wednesday

There are countless ways to get clients to call you and book your services. In this lesson, you’ll discover the different tools and techniques you can use to build your clientele. You’ll start with basic marketing materials, and see how to exude a professional image through business cards and brochures. Then, we'll delve into advertising, and consider whether paid advertisements are worth the money. We'll also discuss how to use things like press releases and social media to get free publicity, and whether joining professional organizations can boost your business. Finally, we'll explore ways to establish and deepen your relationship with clients once you've caught their attention—from how to handle that first phone call to special things you can do to keep clients happy and loyal.

Lesson 10 - How to Set up a Business

Friday

At this point, you've developed the skills and knowledge to be a successful pet sitter. But how do you set up shop? In this lesson, you’ll see how to establish your business, including both your actual office and the legal structures you have to have in place to keep your venture stable. You’ll learn about the licenses you'll need and get a good sense of why contracts with customers are so important. You’ll appreciate the different types of insurance, both for the business and you personally. Finally, you’ll learn the ins and outs of employees—when to hire them and what they cost.

Week 6

Lesson 11 - Accounting, Money Management, and the Business Plan

Wednesday

Time to hit the books—the financial books, that is. In this lesson, you’ll delve into the world of accounting so you can see where your business is heading financially. You’ll find out how to determine start-up costs as well as the ongoing costs of running a pet sitting business. You’ll also come face to face with the necessity of getting your bills paid, and get some suggestions to ensure your clients pay in a timely fashion. Finally, we'll explore the importance of writing a business plan to set a road map for success and help you convince lenders that your new business is a solid investment.

Lesson 12 - Expanding the Business for Fun and Profit

Friday

You’ll discover that pet sitting doesn’t have to be just feeding and watering the cat or dog. As a pet sitter, you are perfectly positioned to add other services. This can include grooming for the animals you look after, cutting their nails, and brushing their teeth. Then there are services such as dog walking, puppy care and training, pet taxi, home sitting, and even poop scooping. You’ll also learn that there are other species to look after, each requiring their own expertise.

INSTRUCTOR

Jeff Grognet has been a companion animal veterinarian for 25 years. He was a pioneer in the field of veterinary assistant teaching, developing his first course almost 20 years ago. The overwhelming success of his veterinary receptionist/assistant college courses led him to expand his teaching into other areas in high demand, including pet first aid and alternative medical therapies for companion animals. He practices with his wife at a Veterinary Hospital in BC, Canada. Jeff has published a large and diverse number of articles and is a regular contributing author to several magazines.

REVIEWS

I really enjoyed this course. Jeff is an excellent instructor. I learned a great deal about the pet sitting business and quite a bit more about animals. The course is structured and has covered everything needed in detail to answer my questions. I now have the confidence to put it all together. Jeff is very encouraging and knowledgeable.

I loved this course! I've always had an interest in pet sitting. I have been doing it for friends and family for years now, but I just never realized I could do it as a career. I'm thankful for the knowledge that I've gained through this course. I'm looking forward to seeing what I can do in the world of pet sitting.

I am so glad I did this course! Before, I thought, “Oh, I’ll just start a pet-sitting business.” Now I realize what is really involved in caring for someone else’s “fur child.” I cannot believe how much information Jeff packed into this little six-week course. All of the lessons were valuable, interesting, and engaging. I feel totally prepared to start my own business now, and I am also thinking about how I can expand to offer other services in the future. I would recommend that anyone considering starting a pet-sitting business take this course—you will learn SO much and be more professional and marketable as a result. I loved it! Thanks, Jeff.

Thank you so much for this packed-with-knowledge class. As a long-time animal (dog, cat and horse) owner, I thought I knew all there was to know when I began taking this course. Wow, was I wrong. There is so much good information here that it enhanced my basic knowledge and has given me the confidence to start my own small business.

Enjoyable learning and reading of the information and quizzes. I would refer anyone wanting to start pet-sitting to this course. Thank you!

I want to pet sit when I retire from full-time work...I learned a lot of medical concepts that people never think about. I also learned a lot about the many needed forms for running this type of business. The instructor gave many helpful links and he and his assistant answered any questions posted on the discussion boards.

Pet sitting is something I've wanted to do, but didn't know where to start. This course was exactly what I was looking for! I've already started the process - thanks to my instructor. I can't wait to see where this road goes!

I enjoyed this class very much, and I'm very impressed with the material that was covered. I honestly felt that every point was touched on that I will need to start my business. Wonderful instructor!

I would definitely recommend this course anyone thinking of starting a pet sitting business...In addition to good information regarding the business side of pet sitting, it contains insight on how to tell if a pet needs medical attention and what should be considered an emergency. There's much more information in this course than I expected!

Thank you! I thoroughly enjoyed this course. I especially enjoyed the lessons on caring for pets and what do in emergency situations. It gave me the impetus to get going. Last week I had my first clients. The course knowledge came in handy and the clients have already booked again for a week in 2016...Thank you!